Several people may still be trapped inside, the minister said.

While 60 injured people are being treated in hospital, 48 others have been discharged from hospital after being cured, Koca said.

Some of those injured are reported to be in critical condition.

There were about 150 to 200 people working in the factory at the time of the explosion, according to initial reports.

“The factory had 110 tons of fireworks in its warehouse,” the governor said.

The sound of the explosion was heard from many parts of the province. Many people in the city took to the streets after the explosion.

It was not immediately clear what caused the incident, according to media reports.

The country’s interior, health and labor ministers went to Sakarya to monitor the situation.

On February 1, 2008, a fireworks disaster occurred in Istanbul, the Turkey’s most crowded city, when an unlicensed fireworks factory exploded accidentally, leaving by some reports at least 22 people dead and at least 100 injured. (ILKHA)